Byakkotai in Aizu-Wakamatsu City

Back to Aizu-Wakamatsu City. The above vending machines show a scene from our next sightseeing spot.

Back in the 1800’s, Byakkotai was a group of teenage boys who were fighting in a civil war in Aizu-Wakamatsu City. They thought they were losing (even though they weren’t) and so they chose to commit suicide. Of the twenty boys who killed themselves, one survived to tell their tale.

We walked up to the area where they died. We took the stairs, but to the right of us is an escalator.

Nice view.

Where the boys are buried.

Moving on the actual spot where they killed themselves.

A statue commemorates the spot of their suicides.

What the boys saw before they died…..

Japan has, unfortunately, a long history of suicide when the going gets tough. Not sure if these boys should be recognized as heros or not. Anyway, it is a very sad story.